


Just Once More

by Fiery_Mullet



Series: A Lullaby from the Stars - a collection of Krolia and Keith oneshots/drabbles [4]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst and Romance, Family Feels, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-30
Updated: 2018-06-30
Packaged: 2019-05-31 05:18:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15112595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fiery_Mullet/pseuds/Fiery_Mullet
Summary: Keith and Krolia see another shared memory from Krolia's past, where Keith hears a song his father used to sing.





	Just Once More

**Author's Note:**

> Words in bold and italics are lyrics to the song "Wildflower" by Skylark.

“I leave at first light.”

 

Krolia taped the gauze in place. She then helped the man, whose gunshot wound she had just cleaned and bandaged, put a sling over his shoulder. He looked at her with a sad look in his eyes that she had only seen once- when he thought she was going back to the Blades before she told him she had a new mission on their planet.

 

“Is there no way I can change your mind?”

 

Touching their foreheads together, Krolia grimaced, looking as if she was the one injured.

 

“I love you. But this is the only way I can protect you both.”

 

She looked up when her man pulled back, but it was only so he could kiss her forehead. He then got up and walked towards the CD player, popped in a disc and music filled the room as he walked back to her.

 

**_She’s faced the hardest times you could imagine_ **

**_And many times her eyes fought back the tears_ **

 

 With his usual soft, loving smile, he extended his good hand. “May I ask for this dance?”

 

**_And when her youthful world was about to fall in_ **

**_Each time her slender shoulders bore the weight of all her fears_ **

 

With a rueful grin, Krolia took his hand. She got up and moved in synch with him, leaning on his shoulder one last time. One last dance.

 

For the first time in her life, she was able to depend on someone, did not have to constantly watch her back, and felt what it was like to be protected. But that night, it would all end, as she had chosen to give up that life for something far more important- her child’s future.

 

-x-

 

The sound of rain batting hard against the walls of their small cave drowned out the steady crackling of firewood coming from the fire. Keith’s eyelids fluttered open and he felt something trailing down his face before the space wolf started licking his cheek. He figured it might have been his new friend’s drool.

 

“Hey, buddy.”

 

The hypnotic rhythm of the raindrops and the cold temperature made it a struggle for him not to go right back to sleep. Still groggy, he sat up. His gaze naturally turned towards the only other person there- his mother.

 

Krolia was absently watching the rain, expression as calm and hard to read as usual at first glance. But  on a closer look, Keith could tell with the look of nostalgia in her eyes that what he saw earlier was not just a dream, but another shared memory caused by the mysterious bursts of light in the quantum abyss.

 

Turning his gaze towards the fire, Keith thought back on the music his father played in that memory. It was a song he also knew all too well. At times his father thought Keith was already asleep, he would pull his chair by the window, look up at the stars in the sky, and sing that song. Always. Without fail. Until the last night they spent together. Its lyrics had been ingrained in his memory, and the tune kept safe in his heart.

 

There was no explanation, and perhaps he didn’t need one. Clearing his throat, he started to sing. At the first note, the first word, Krolia’s eyes instantly turned his way. Her puzzled look softened into a smile as she let her eyes drift close. Her face showed she was lost in fond memories, and Keith felt a little satisfaction in his heart knowing he caused it.

 

“Let her cry for she’s a lady

Let her dream for she’s a child

Let the rain fall down upon her

She’s a free and gentle flower growing wild…”

  

When he finished the song, as if right on cue his little wolf pup howled. The mother and child who shared identical faces both blinked, twice, before letting out a chuckle.

 

“Thank you, Keith. I felt like I was able to dance with him again. Just once more.”

 

“Dad, he… He really loved that song.”

 

The little pup made himself comfortable beside Krolia then leaned on her lap. Not another word passed between them as she caressed his soft fur while her son quietly stared at the fire. Not long after, Krolia dozed off. Around the same time, the rain let up. As the clouds slowly parted to give way to a clear sky, a rainbow appeared, eliciting a gentle smile on Keith’s face.

 

“Hey buddy, wanna come with me to hunt? Let’s bring back food before she wakes up.”

 

The space wolf swiftly got up and trotted to his side. Keith mused that even though he already knew and understood the reason why his mother left, their only real connection at the moment was the same blood running through their veins. It would never change how she was still a stranger who he had never known all his life.

 

**_And sleep’s the only freedom that she knows_ **

**_And when you walk into her eyes, you won’t believe_ **

**_The way she’s always payin’ for a debt she never owes_ **

****

He couldn’t promise his father that he and Krolia would become a family, just like the two of them were after she left. But at the very least, he could vow to his father this much.

 

_‘You can rest easy now, Dad. I’ll take care of Mom.’_

 

 

Fin.


End file.
